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“To be fair in the first 10, 15 minutes were kept the ball but sloppy passes let us down.

“Chris Stockton had a chance to play Jamie Owens in right at the start and I think if he had passed, Jamie would probably have gone on to score. But it’s all hindsight now.

The teams line up before the FA Vase final at Wembley Stadium

“People say if Max Craggs had played it would have been a different outcome but we had a strong enough squad on the day. I just think we didn’t turn up in the first half and left it too late in the second half.

“I don’t think we got over the penalty in the first half and needed half-time to regroup,” he added. “We had a couple cleared off the line, a couple of half-chances; balls going across the face of goal but we didn’t have that luck to get on the end of them and I think that’s what you need in games like this.

“To be fair to Thatcham, they had a couple of chances when they hit the bar and could have done better, they had one cleared right at the end.

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“It’s disappointing but we’re proud of what we’ve achieved. To bring 4,500 fans and to walk out in that stadium is something I’ll always remember.”

Dunwell thinks his players may have struggled with nerves in the early stages of the game and Stockton certainly improved as the match progressed.

Michael Dunwell

“It sometimes happens in finals when players don’t turn up or don’t play at their best,” he said. “Nerves? We spoke about that at half-time, I think nerves got to a few of them. But it’s going to, walking out at that stadium.

“It’s how you deal with it and I think in the second half they did. It was just too little too late unfortunately.”

Despite losing, Dunwell was able to appreciate the occasion, even if it went by in a flash.

“It’s been superb, if you can’t enjoy this you shouldn’t be in football, the whole place is just unbelievable.

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“Coming in on the bus into the stadium, it’s huge. To walk through into the changing rooms where every individual has a picture up and messages from their families, they won’t forget that. Walking out onto the that pitch is fantastic.

“The game just flies by, especially the second half, you turn around and all of a sudden it’s the 85th minute. We tried to get an equaliser but, unfortunately, it just didn’t happen.”

Stockton have enjoyed a remarkable rise from the Teesside League to the top flight of the Northern League.

Asked where the final stands in terms of achievements, Dunwell answered: “This is right at the top. Obviously we have won trophies in the Wearside League where we won all four, we won the Northern League second division at the first attempt.

Stockton Town in action against Thatcham Town in the Vase final

“But to get to the FA Vase final – we never thought that in our wildest dreams. We’ve done really well and the lads should be really proud of themselves.

“I hope our fans have enjoyed themselves, it’s been a helluva trip to make in one day and a lot of them will be at work tomorrow so we appreciate that.”

The penalty was the turning point of a tight game. It resulted from James Ward’s mistimed tackle on Jordan Brown.

Keeper Michael Arthur made a superb attempt to stop the conversion but, despite getting an arm to the ball, he couldn’t keep it out.

Dunwell had no complaints about the referee’s decision to point immediately to the spot.

Stockton fans at the Vase final

“No problems at all with that,” he said. “We gave away a sloppy free-kick on the far side and then switched off.

“We got the wrong side of him and should have stayed on our feet. Michael Arthur was unlucky not to save it to be fair, he’s disappointed with himself because he thought he should have saved it.”

After a long season, Stockton can finally pause for breath and Dunwell says the club will make the most of the break before planning for next season.

“We’ve got to have a rest, it’s been a long season, we’ve played a lot of games in a short space of time and it’s great but we've got to have a rest,” he said.

“Then we’ll come back after a few weeks and have a chat with the chairman and discuss what we need and where we want to go and hopefully we can come to an agreement where we can push on and hopefully try to go for promotion next season.”